Sound operating practices are essential if our railway is to run safely and successfully. Skilful operators can make the trains run safely and on time – and the best operators deserve recognition.

For this reason the Institution of Railway Operators and Modern Railways magazine are joining forces to launch the Golden Whistles Awards. These awards will acknowledge best practice and congratulate railway operators that have done a good job by rewarding them with that ultimate symbol of smart operating – a whistle!

The Golden Whistles will emulate the successful Golden Spanners Awards already run by Modern Railways. Every November, the Golden Spanners reward excellence in train maintenance. They have become fiercely contested in the industry, with maintainers vying with one another to push up the NFRIP figures for their fleets so that they can claim a ‘Spanner’. The awards scheme has helped to spread best practice and improve performance.

Like the Golden Spanners, the Golden Whistles will be based on objective data. There will be five categories in the awards:

• Most Improved Operational Safety – 2008 v 2009 SPaD rate per million train miles all (sourced from RSSB)
• Best Operational Safety – 2009 SPaD rate per million train miles all (sourced from RSSB)
• Best Operational Performance (MAA) - NTF
• Most Improved Operational Performance (% change) - NTF
• Best Operational Delivery – All ‘Train Facilities’ categories to be selected.  The best mean average of all of the categories will be deemed the winner.

For each category there will be a Golden Whistle for the winner and a Silver Whistle for second place or ‘Highly Commended’.

While the choice of winners will be based on the data and there will be no need for companies to put entries into the awards, a panel of senior railway executives will interpret the data and ensure fair play. They are:

• David Franks – Chief Executive Trains Division (National Express)
• Mark Hopwood – MD First Great Western
• Tim Shoveller – MD East Midlands Trains
• Robin Gisby – Director of Operations and Customer Services, Network Rail.

The 2010 Golden Whistles Awards will be presented at the January meeting of the Modern Railways Fourth Friday Club, which will take place on Friday 22 January in central London. The event will start with networking over pre-lunch drinks, followed by luncheon. After lunch, Tim Shoveller, Managing Director of East Midlands Trains and Chair of the IROSE, will give a speech, after which the awards will be presented. The event will close at 15.30.

While entries are not required, we do ask companies to support the event by booking tables at the luncheon and taking operating personnel along to celebrate at the event. Our aim is to make the Golden Whistles a key event in the calendar of the railway operating community, in the way that the Golden Spanners have proved to be for the rolling stock maintenance fraternity.

Tables of ten, priced at £900 each, can be booked through Chris Shilling on 07736635916 or e-mail chris@shillingmedia.co.uk

We trust you will support this venture and we look forward to seeing you on 22 January.


Robert Mullen, Organiser, IROSE
Tim Shoveller, Chair, IROSE
James Abbott, Editor, Modern Railways